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Alfie 2004 |
Review by Jonathan Cornwell |
Directed by Charles Shyer
R, 100 min. (sexual content, language, drug use) |
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Starring: Jude Law, Omar Epps, Jane Krakowski, Nia Long, Sienna Miller, Susan Sarandon, Marisa Tomei
Producers: Charles Shyer, Elaine Pope
Screenplay: Elaine Pope, Charles Shyer
Cinematography: Ashley Rowe
Distributor: Paramount Pictures
Released: 11.05.04 (Wide) |
Rating:
  (out of ) |
Alfie is a remake of the 1966 film starring Michael Caine, which sees a Londonite playboy who preys upon the weak
(unsuspecting women) around him. The current version stars Jude Law, except the hedonism takes place in Manhattan.
This version, directed by Charles Shyer, could be labeled a morality play but is more appropriately a cautionary tale of
the careless life of the playboy (which, outside of the prospect of STDs, is already a shaky prospect). The film exudes
the carefree attitude of its title character for about thirty minutes, until the grim reality of the promiscuous lifestyle begins
to take its toll. Surprisingly, the picture retains much of the original's appeal while treading into much darker, insightful
territory. A fine performance from an exuberant Law compensates for any lingering doubts about the film's merit, and
by the time the bittersweet conclusion arrives, Alfie has won the viewer over.
When Alfie's vision of the perfect life - beautiful women on demand without attachment - begins to slowly reveal the
cracks in his seemingly impregnable armor of handsome bravado, he is forced to examine the self-proclaimed happiness
that is suddenly turning sour. As a limo driver who regularly drives around gorgeous women, his motto of FBB (face, boobs, bum)
seems a viable existence. He even has sort of a girlfriend, Julie (Marisa Tomei), whom he cheats on without remorse but
is sometimes convicted by the sight of her young son. After she eventually drops him, he finds maybe his ideal specimem in
Nikki (Sienna Miller), a beautiful but deeply troubled young women. As a tonic to that disaster, Alfie takes up after a different type
of woman - the older, wiser but sexy Liz (Susan Sarandon) - who teaches him that the game he's playing can work both
ways. But the low point is the betrayal of his best friend, Marlon (Omar Epps), by seducing his girlfriend, Lonette (Nia Long),
who becomes pregnant with his child. It's at this point that Alfie begins to reevaluate his lonely lifestyle.
The slowly enveloping, downward spiral that Alfie finds himself in is difficult for him to recognize because he has built an aura of
invincibility in regard to his worldview. The accumulation of setbacks are burdensome but not crushing, and he salves each
fresh wound with another conquest, until he is eventually shaken by a brush with erectile dysfunction and the aforementioned
turnabout by his latest girlfriend. This is a man whose unflappable libido is tempered only by the threat of its possible
termination, so learning from past mistakes is difficult for him to digest. The highlight of the film is observing Alfie's
desperate struggle to keep a self-deceptive smile as the ship is going down all around him.
Ultimately, Alfie succeeds because it draws power from the doomed lifestyle that Alfie doggedly pursues.
As the final scenes unfold, Alfie's self-examination has yielded partial retraction of his belief system, although he's certainly
not affront to re-embracing his old self if the moment presents itself. In a way, the film is also a sad commentary on the
self-absorbed, and how guilt can only do so much. Law's superb effort transforms the screen character into something
palpable and heartfelt, and Shyer cleverly disguises his real intentions in a cascade of superficiality that makes the destination
even more startling. This is a film that presents its options and allows the viewer to decide which path Alfie will take.
© 2004 Jonathan Cornwell
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 | Masterpiece - Film perfection |
| Excellent - A Must See |
| Good - Highly Recommended |
| Fair - Worth seeing |
| Average - Viewable, but not recommended |
| Below average - View at own risk |
| Poor - Avoid at all costs |
| Very poor - An embarassment to the film industry |
| Zero | Awful - One of the worst films ever made |
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